The European Commission and the EU’s border agency, Frontex, today each confirmed a coronavirus case within their ranks.
“As the virus is spreading, we have a colleague in the Commission who has tested positive, but is doing well under the current circumstances,” Commissioner Johannes Hahn, who is responsible for human resources, wrote to staff in an email.
Hahn said that “necessary precautionary measures were already taken last week to protect the colleague and others.”
“I can reassure you that we will continue doing so,” he wrote in the email, seen by POLITICO.
A Commission spokesperson reiterated the information in the email and said they could not give any further details.
Frontex said a person who works in its Warsaw office had contracted the virus.
“Frontex Crisis Management Team met in our HQ on Sunday to discuss the situation and decided on the necessary measures to contain the spread of the virus. We are in close contact with the Polish sanitary authorities,” the agency said in a statement.
“All staff members who came into direct contact with the infected person, as well as their families, have been instructed to self-isolate for 14 days and monitor their health,” the statement added.
“Today, the relevant part of our HQ in Warsaw is closed for decontamination and the staff who are working from home.”
Frontex said it activities “both in the HQ and in the field” are unaffected.
Two other EU bodies, the European Defense Agency and the Council of the EU, reported cases of coronavirus last week.